Between Pen and Paper
by SakuraSagura
Summary: You never really appreciate a book until you’re in one. The Elric brothers are no exception. When Ed and Al find their world is tearing itself to pieces, they won't go down without a fight. Their life may be the work of fiction but it still has value.
1. Prologue

The world was falling to pieces, leaving only the faint strands of an uncertain reality tied together. Edward looked up at the once blue sky and found a strange sensation quiver in his gut. The sky was deteriorating behind the tall buildings, fading as he stood there watching, leaving what was left of his home hanging in a blank nothingness. The rustling sound that he had become so accustomed to echoed in his ears as he ran forward atop unstable cobblestones. Suddenly the stones rushed up to meet him. A familiar sensation filtered through Edward even before he looked down at his feet.

So, Edward mused, this was the end.

* * *

**Fullmetal Alchemist**

**Between Pen and Paper**

**Prologue - The Vanishing Village**

**By SakuraSagura**

**Disclaimer cleverly combined with an Author's Note…**

**What is this? I'm alive? Wow, that's rather unexpected. Alas, my writing muscles appear to be a bit on the flabby side, but that should hopefully even out soon. Anyways, you probably know the drill by now. I don't own FMA. If I did, I don't think the fandom wouldn't be nearly as fun. Darn. I wish I was an amazingly talented cow...**

**Anyway... Please enjoy the prologue!**

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Rain rushed down from the clouded sky, leaving Central City to slosh through the wet chill that filled every inch of its streets. Most of the flags lacing the outside of the government's headquarters had been piled away inside. In the early morning as the workers finished up folding several flags, Riza Hawkeye made her way down the fluorescent tinted hallway. Her black coots clicked stoically against the tiled floor as she approached the door to where she would find Colonel Roy Mustang. She knocked with one hand and adjusted a collection of papers with the other.

"Come in," called Mustang. She did so. Mustang was behind his desk, looking small behind the large stacks of papers that seemed to hold him hostage. He scribbled furiously. Hawkeye wondered absently if he had actually been doing his work or not. She decided on the latter.

"Colonel," she began as she passed the tables where other subordinates sat, "there's a report here for you." Mustang looked up her. He felt unease at the expression Hawkeye was struggling to hide away behind her mask of calm. He took the papers and was unable to escape the frown that caught him as the weight of the sheets fell into his hand. He had enough papers here to decimate half a forest in his opinion, but Hawkeye's expression troubled him enough for his eyes to scan the first lines of the page.

In silence Mustang's rather irritated face smoothed into one of sickened horror. The report told of a village that had been overtaken by a rugged group of terrorists. As men were sent out to repress the criminals they merely arrived at a vast hole. He continued to read, stopping at one part in particular.

'_Upon arrival, the officers of Southern Headquarters came upon a large hole, which seemed to have engulfed the entirety of the town. Searching the very outskirts, the troops found farms. The people at the very outskirts of the village of Fromage reported hearing a strange noise earlier that morning. When they inspected it later that day they found no trace of their town.'_

"Sir?" inquired a fair-haired soldier with an unlit cigarette in his mouth. His superior simply sat there, his face now frozen in terror.

"The village…" Mustang gulped as he set the papers down. He leaned forward and rubbed his temples, which had been throbbing to the beat of the constant rain since he had awoken that morning, and took several deep breaths. He rested his forehead there in his hands and said, "Fromage and everyone in it disappeared in one night."

Havoc, who was halfway out of his chair, stopped. Fuery let out a small gasp and Breda looked up from his breakfast with a shocked expression.

"How is that possible?" Fuery finally managed as he looked at Mustang worriedly. Mustang folded his hands together, laid his chin atop his fingers, and scanned the paper in front of him. Hawkeye looked at him for a moment before stating,

"There may have been an explosion in Fromage. There were terrorists there, they had weapons, and Fromage isn't too far from a train route. They may have been trying to destroy the tracks and…"

"And they ended up blowing the town to smithereens instead." Havoc finished for her. He had risen to his feet but remained near his desk.

"Right, that sounds reasonable. But all those people…" Fuery said in a near whisper, looking down at the polished top of his desk. "Why would they want to hide out in that village? It is near a railroad, but not a heavily traveled one."

"Maybe they thought the military wouldn't expect that piece of rail as much. I know terrorists have destroyed obscurer train routes before. Fromage does supply headquarters with food and therefore could be a target." Breda explained before he scooped some oatmeal into his mouth. His calculating eyes swung around the room, waiting for someone else to donate their ideas.

"Or," Mustang ventured from behind mountains of paper, "an alchemist is responsible for this." He flipped the page over and studied the next one, eyes suddenly colder than they had been only moments before. His subordinates muttered their opinions on the subject as he tried to ignore the beating his temples were giving him. Suddenly, he stopped and looked up hurriedly. "Where are the Elrics?"

"I think they were on their way to Resembool, sir." Fuery offered. "Edward had his automail damaged a bit on his last trip before he came back through Central."

"Someone get me a map!" Mustang ordered as he stood up from his chair, black bangs flying over his forehead as he rushed over to where Feury had been sitting. The young soldier had scattered to one side of the room, fumbling through a box of maps until he found one of Amestris that showed the Southern train routes clearly. He unfurled it for the colonel and placed it on his desk. The others crowded around as Mustang examined the lines of ink that were Amestris's railroads.

"What are you looking for, Colonel?" Havoc asked as he chewed on the end of his cigarette. Mustang allowed his finger to stop at the village of Fromage.

"Here is Fromage," he said before slowly tracing his finger down the map a bit, " and here is Resembool."

"You don't seriously think that those brothers are responsible for wiping out an entire village in one night, do you?" Hawkeye said, raising her voice at the unfathomable idea. Mustang looked around at her.

"I'm not saying they did, nor am I denying the fact that they have the power to do so. I don't think Fullmetal and his brother would attempt something so stupid, but if they were on their way to Resembool then they may have ended up in the crossfire." The colonel rolled the map back up and stalked back to his own desk, frowning hard and wishing his head would stop trying to make him feel like his skull was slowly crushing inward.

"Now, go and find out where those two are!" Mustang called as he swung himself into his chair. He bunkered down and scanned the papers again, wondering just what was going on.

Outside the frantic room Mustang and his subordinates were held in, rain continued to fall against the building. The gray clouds swirled as if a drain had unexpectedly opened, allowing the clouds to suck themselves away into the empty sky above, yet unable to keep the large droplets of water from cascading down towards the city below.

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**Huzzah, it's done! I know it was short, very, very short compared to what I used to write, hee hee. However, I still want to hear your opinions and ideas before I start posting the actual chapters. I'd love to get some critique. If you don't like it, fine, please tell me your thoughts as to why you don't. If you do, well, hopefully you'll be kind enough to press that little button that says "submit review", right?**

**See you (hopefully) in chapter one!**


	2. Stained

**Fullmetal Alchemist**

**Between Pen and Paper**

**Chapter One - Stained**

**By SakuraSagura**

**Disclaimer…**

**I don't own FMA. There, are you happy now? Now, while I sulk, please enjoy chapter one!  
**

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The train sped along its tracks, rushing on rails sprinkled over hills, dipping into valleys, and charging towards its destination without a single thought. Central had long since faded in the distance and all that the scarce passengers now had to look at was a wet countryside full of bowing fields and saluting trees.Rain slapped against the windows as Edward shifted in his seat. His entire body ached as he maneuvered into a slightly less painful position to sit in. Edward wanted some shuteye before they arrive in Resembool, knowing from experience that a headache before having a wrench slammed into his forehead didn't help him any. Alphonse peeked over the book he was reading as his brother grunted in discomfort.

"Brother, what are you doing?"

"Trying to sit." Edward responded as he adjusted himself yet again.

"You're not doing very well. Usually when people sit they keep themselves on their seat."

"Thanks, Al," Edward said with a tint of sarcasm in his voice as he scooted more towards the window, "I didn't know that. It's a good thing I have such a smart little brother."

"No problem, glad I could help." Al said with a smile in his voice. Finally, after some deliberation, Edward decided on leaning against the cool window, allowing his legs to stretch out on the seat. The rain beat against the window, lending a slippery rhythm to vibrate against the back of Edward's head. It was soothing as he sat there in the otherwise silent train car. Smiling slightly, Edward closed his eyes.

"Brother?" Alphonse inquired after some time. Edward blinked groggily as he turned to look at the suit of armor adjacent to him. Alphonse was quiet as his fingers tightened against the book he held.

"What is it?" Edward mumbled, trying to keep his eyes open.

"What do you think happens after a book ends?" Alphonse stared at the battered form of his brother as Edward contemplated the question he had just been asked.

"I don't know, Al. It's just a story." He admitted. Edward turned his face away from Alphonse and said, "They probably just go on living. Why do you ask?" Alphonse sat silently for a moment, his sight locked on the smooth, dark green cover of the book in his hands.

"This book I'm reading just makes me curious, that's all."

"Yeah…?"

"The protagonist has to go through so much trouble, only to finally achieve his goal. What happens then? What's the rest of his life like?" Alphonse said.

Edward yawned. He adjusted himself once again, the question his brother had asked of him processing itself through his mind. As Edward searched for an answer, he listened to the rain that persisted in accompanying them on their journey. His little brother's question struck home. Edward had so often thought only of their goal to return to normal that his mind had little chance to wonder about where that would lead them afterward.

Forcing a grin, Edward said, "The protagonist probably got clobbered when he went back to his hometown."

"I don't know. He doesn't have an automail mechanic waiting to hit him over the head with a wrench." Alphonse chuckled as he replied.

"What? Does his mechanic have a hammer?" Edward asked, his eyes opening wide at the thought. He attempted to sit up straight to show his surprise, but a look of pain slipped across his face. Alphonse felt the air around them tighten in a mute worry as he stood up to help.

They had gone through the promises only a day ago, but promises didn't necessarily come true. Edward and Alphonse had looked at each other, the younger Elric frowning inwardly at the bandages Edward hosted, and promised that the next lead would bring results. But, Alphonse knew as he helped Edward lie down against several proud protests, they had promised the same thing numerous times. He wanted things back to normal. He wanted things to work out like in the book he had read. Alphonse didn't want a life built atop promises unfulfilled anymore.

* * *

The train grumbled as the tracks beneath it stretched out and away. In a few hours, Resembool would appear. Edward and Alphonse were the only passengers remaining in the car, and the older of the two was snoring as he slumped beneath his coat. Alphonse had long since finished his book and was now peering out the window. The constant rumbling of metal against metal had lulled an exhausted Edward to sleep, but couldn't offer the same gift to the boy trapped in the armor. He instead played with the crimson bookmark, finding that the thick paper now seemed strange, sitting in his hand without any real purpose.

"I wonder if everything will work out for us like the boy in the book." Alphonse whispered, the bookmark his only listener. He turned to look out the window. Edward's snores mixed softly with the pounding rain as Alphonse watched the world pass by without a second look at the train that was running right through it.

And then he realized with a start that the earth was coming up to meet him.

Alphonse could do little else than grab for his brother as the train jerked and cried out as metal bent against metal. A chorus of falling luggage and shrill shrieks from other cars filled the air as the train toppled over. The lights throughout the cars disappeared even before the ground slammed against the train's side.

Alphonse waited a moment as silence settled in again. It was a bizarre counterpart to what had previously filled the air. Beneath him, tangled in his red coat, Edward's muffled voice called out in confusion. Alphonse hesitantly rose to his knees and viewed his twisted surroundings. The only light source came from the windows that had once been across the aisle from them. They now brought in light from above, square cutouts of the gray sky to illuminate the broken car.

"Al!" Edward shouted as he untangled himself, "Are you okay? What just happened?" As soon as the words left his lips, Edward realized he was now sitting on the wall he had been laying his head against earlier.

"The train fell over." Alphonse said simply as he stood up and watched as dust filtered through the sparse light. Edward got to his feet too. The brothers picked up their belongings through the ruble quickly. After their things had been stored away inside Alphonse, they looked back up at the ceiling.

"Sorry, Brother, but I'm pretty sure we can't get out that way."

"What?" Edward asked in a rising voice. His dirty face turned sour as he stared up at the windows. "Are you saying I'm too short to reach all the way up there?"

"No," Alphonse sighed, "that wasn't what I was saying. I mean that the train's probably pretty unstable. You might fall through." Calming down a bit, Edward nodded.

"Right. Should we strengthen up the walls then?"

"It couldn't hurt. Be careful though, Brother." Alphonse warned. Edward grinned at Alphonse before hopping over to a wall that had once been a ceiling. It appeared a little crunched but nonetheless stable enough to transmute, Edward decided after a quick look-over. Gritting his teeth at the pain throbbing throughout most of his body, Edward clapped his hands together and then rested them against the wall.

The bent railings that had stored their luggage twisted back to normal and the wall straightened itself before peeling away. When Edward pulled his hands back, an exit stood waiting for them.

The brothers emerged from the wreck. Thick drops of water fell from the sky as they examined the rest of the area. Most of the cars looked as bad off as theirs, but all the front cars seemed to have disappeared.

"Al, stay here and see if there are any people trapped in these other cars, okay? I'm going to run up ahead and see what's happened." Edward said as he pulled on his red coat. Alphonse sighed but agreed to do so, deciding that saving those still inside the train was too important for him to argue with his brother now. As Edward sloshed through the mud, Alphonse watched him struggle to keep his legs moving. Alphonse shook his head. Edward could be so stubborn sometimes.

* * *

When Edward had made his way up to the front of the train he nearly fell forward into the edge of a vast hole. He looked down into the opening in the earth, eyes wide at the expanse of it. It was perfectly circular, as if a giant cookie cutter had etched itself into the earth and torn away the dirt it had captured. He saw where the rail had been cut away. It was perfect. It stopped at the same point where the hole started. The train, however, had not been as fortunate.

Edward stepped carefully to peer down at the wreckage. The train had fallen into a crumpled heap at the bottom of the hole. His fists tightened as he gazed at it. It was mostly cars used for supplies and the engine, but there would have had to be workers there to keep the train moving. A dark liquid had seeped out of the overturned locomotive's front cars.

He peeked over his shoulder hastily to make sure Alphonse was okay. Sure enough, the suit of armor was ushering several disheveled passengers out into the rain. Gulping, Edward began his way down the side of the hole.

Only minutes later, Edward slid to his feet, mud staining every inch of him. He hurried over to the car where the liquid had pooled from, hoping it was only oil and not something else that he was looking at. The cars were crushed and Edward knew there was little chance that whoever had been in there was going to emerge from the carnage on their own. He breathed deeply, ignoring the protests his body was giving him, and was about to ready himself for a rescue when his nose caught something. Edward shook his head and sent drops of water falling to the soupy ground below. He sniffed at the air, unable to remember where he had smelled the stench before.

While he wrestled with the answer, something sounded from one of the cars. He searched them all, finding nothing but an empty darkness and floors stained black nearly every time he peered through a shattered window or repaired a damaged wall. The noise came again and this time Edward recognized the sound of something being shredded.

"Hey!" Edward called, "Are you okay?" He waited for a reply, but the ripping sound stopped as soon as he had spoken. He called again but still no answer returned to him. He shouted into the wreck that he was going to try to fix the car and get them out. Energy jolted from Edward's palms as he pressed his hands against the car. After a few transmutations, Edward was able to get inside.

Edward discovered that the floor was again covered in a black liquid. Edward gagged at the strong smell. He stumbled through the heavy air and looked around as his eyes began to water. The place was a mess. Maps had been scattered around, luggage opened and tossed about, and the windows freed of their glass. While bending down to look closer at the mess, Edward saw bits of torn paper swallowed by the black liquid.

"What the hell…?" He uttered, scanning the room. He was sure he'd heard something moving. Had someone been tearing the paper before escaping somehow? It didn't seem likely, Edward thought. He searched the rest of the debris, finding nothing more than what he had already seen.

"Brother!" Edward's head snapped up from the floor at Alphonse's distant voice. He rose swiftly to his feet and turned towards the exit he had created, only for his boot to snag itself on a bag of coals on the floor.

Edward fell into the black liquid before he knew what had happened. He stumbled to his feet and ran out into the rain with aching knees, spitting out the liquid that had found a way into his mouth. He called back to his brother, who looked over the edge of the hole.

"Did you find anyone?" Alphonse shouted over the rain. Edward shook his head. He hadn't heard or seen anything aside from the tearing sound and the mysteriously empty cars. By the time he'd crawled to the top of the hole he could still taste the black liquid.

"Brother," Alphonse said in a startled voice, "why are you covered in ink?" Edward blinked and looked down at himself. His red coat had begun to match the rest of his outfit with large blots of black careening across it. That was going to take some transmuting to fix, he thought unhappily.

"I slipped in one of the cars." Edward explained as he frowned down at his now obsidian colored gloves.

"Was there ink on the floor?"

"Yeah," Edward said, "there was ink in every single one." He stopped and thought about that.

"Weird. I wonder if they were transporting ink somewhere…" Alphonse mused as he looked down at the wreck.

"I didn't see any bottles or crates for the ink though. It was just everywhere." He looked at the suit of armor when he suddenly remembered something. "The only place there wasn't any ink was in the cars used strictly for supplies."

"Are you sure you didn't see anyone?" Alphonse asked. Edward nodded his head slowly, thinking. The brothers stared at each other and then the wreck. Neither understood it. Where were the workers, let alone a conductor to even control the train?

"Excuse me," an older looking man cut in. Edward and Alphonse turned to him. He adjusted his wet coat and said, "Are you sure it's safe to be standing around this place? I'm thankful that you boys saved us, but shouldn't we be on our way to a nearby town?" The man stood there, mustache covering up half of his frown. Behind him, the group of passengers had gathered, sitting on salvaged luggage and looking pretty worn down.

"You're right," Alphonse replied as he turned to the gray-haired man and the rest of the passengers. "Does anyone know someplace near here that we can stop at for help?" A couple people nodded, calling out names and directions.

"Fromage should be around here somewhere. It was our next scheduled stop."The man offered as he wrung out his hat. Edward looked around at where they were. Off in the distance, across the hole, he could make out the rest of the railroad.

"All right then, old man, we'll head out that way." Edward pointed to where the tracks were; not noticing the irritated look the man gave him.

* * *

When they had checked to make sure that those who couldn't walk were able to be helped, the group set off around the edge of the hole. Alphonse carried a load of luggage around the edge after Edward refused a piggyback ride. The procession wasn't the fastest, but they were making good time as they walked over hills and around trees. They had determined that if their stride didn't slow too much that the group would arrive at Fromage in no time flat.

Edward grinned thankfully at the sight of the railroad tracks they were closing in on. The man had told them that Fromage, his hometown, was very close to where the train had wrecked. Others let out cries as well, but, Edward realized a second too late, that it wasn't because they had seen the tracks.

"Halt!" A voice ordered, loud and rough. The caravan of luggage and wounded bodies came to a halt, but people still cried out. A gun fired off into the air, and Edward swung his head towards the noise. A man wearing a camouflage jacket and brown pants emerged from the shrubbery and trees that filled the landscape.

"Looks like we've found ourselves some hostages, boss." Another man with a mat of black hair muttered as he arrived next to the camouflaged leader.

"Right. Now that the damn military showed up we'll be needing all the advantages we can get."

"Hey," Edward said loudly, glaring at the two and ignoring Alphonse's nervous protests, "just what makes you think we'll let you capture us?" As Edward's voice melted into the air more men appeared from the trees. Alphonse sighed and looked at his brother over the mound of luggage he carried.

"Brother," Alphonse said in a low whisper, "how about we try negotiating our way out of this?"

"I don't think these bastards want to negotiate, Al." Edward glanced down at the hole they were near the edge of and whispered, "Plus, I'm thinking we just found out who blew up the railroad."

"Now hold on a minute!" The man who had given directions to Edward and Alphonse barked, stepping out of the group and towards the terrorists. "Just what the hell is going on? First you blow up the tracks and now this? And what about the military? If you have a problem with the way they're running things, take it up with the state, not us!" He stopped a little ways away from the group, standing in front of Edward and Alphonse. His mustache twitched as he waited for a reply. The leader's mouth tightened but he looked the man in the eyes.

"That hole wasn't our doing. We lost men to it because the military came in. They knew we were hiding out in Fromage and they tried taking us down." He spat at the ground, which was already having a problem taking in all the water the sky gave it, and continued, "Besides, the military won't listen to us without some kind of edge on our side."

"The military made that hole?" A woman asked in a startled voice as she clutched tightly to her children. "What proof do you have?"

"Why would we blow up our own men?" One of the scoundrels behind the leader snarled. The leader waved him off before turning back to the gray-haired man.

"So, will you come willingly?" He inquired, his fingers lacing themselves tightly around the gun in his hand. The man lifted his chin and stared defiantly at the terrorists, saying there was a nice spot for the lot of them in someplace other than heaven. The leader's face hardened and the gun went off again. The ringing in Edward's ears startled him, but the sight of the gun smoking in the leader's hand and the crumpled form of the old man was worse. Next to him, Alphonse let out a surprised cry as well, oblivious to the bullet lodged in his armor.

"I'll ask again," the leader said, "are you going to all come willingly?"

"Like hell we will," the older Elric spat as his palms fitted together. Before Alphonse could drop the luggage and grab for his brother, Edward was off, his dented automail sharpening as he pulled his hand away. Alphonse shook his head, readying himself for the oncoming fight after he set the luggage onto the muddied earth. Over the cries of the passengers, the battle began.

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**See how much longer that was? Thanks for reading. Please send me a review so that this story won't starve. I'd love some critique.**

**See you in chapter two!**


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